The beginning of a beautiful friendship
by LavenderJade
Summary: Backstory to Phoenix; How Lennie and Jack become roommates when Cathy is killed. No slash, just a beautiful friendship and musing on the meaning of family.
1. Family

Family  
  
Lennie Briscoe had had a hard life. Married twice, divorced twice, 20 years lost to the inside of a bottle. No family to speak of; his ex-wives and daughters hated him. He was an aging cop who kept long hours so that he wouldn't have to spend so much time alone in an empty apartment. He hid behind a tough, cynical façade, joking his way through the day to hide his loneliness.  
  
This day, however, the façade cracked. He and Rey had arrived at the crime scene only to discover the victim was his own daughter. Cathy had recently testified against the drug dealer only to have her testimony discredited by the defense lawyer. Yeah, she had made some mistakes, gotten involved with the wrong people, and cut a deal with the DA in exchange for her testimony. But what really hurt was the guilt by association with her unreliable drunk of a father. The implication was that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Despite her eyewitness testimony, the perp got off. And two weeks later, she was dead.  
  
As soon as he realized what was going on, Rey grabbed Lennie and tried to get him away from the crime scene. Someone else would have to investigate this one. "Come on, partner, I'm taking you home with me." Somehow, he got Lennie into the car and away from that horrible sight. Lennie was collapsed in the passenger seat sobbing uncontrollably. A few blocks later, Rey pulled into a quite side street and parked the car. Rey shivered as he though about the possibility of losing one of his daughters. He couldn't even imagine the pain.  
  
"Lennie, I'm so sorry . . ." As Briscoe raised his red-rimmed eyes, Rey reached out and took his partner into his arms. They sat there in the car until Lennie's tears finally ran out. "Hang in there, partner," Rey said softly as he released his friend and started the car back towards his home. The rest of the trip, Lennie sat in silence as Rey navigated the streets of New York.  
  
Debra had taken the girls over to visit her mother, so the house was quiet when they arrived. As Lennie sank heavily onto the couch, Rey broke the silence.  
  
"Can I get you anything? Glass of water?"  
  
Lennie looked up at him and managed the barest of smiles. "Yeah. Thanks, Rey . . ."  
  
Somehow, Rey knew the thanks weren't for the water. "Hey, I'm your partner. I'm here for you."  
  
Rey turned to the kitchen to get the water, and to call their boss.  
  
Anita Van Buren had gotten the request from dispatch to send another detective unit to the crime scene, and when the phone rang, she jumped on it hoping to hear from Curtis what was going on. Before she could get a word in edgewise, Rey jumped in. "LT, the victim is Lennie's daughter. The one who testified a few weeks ago. She's dead." "Oh God . . .how is he?" "Pretty much a basket case. I got him out of there as fast as I could - we're back at my house now." "Good. Stay with him today, OK? The last think he needs is to be alone through something like this . . ." "Yeah, I know."  
  
And make sure he doesn't get near any booze. The unspoken instruction. Just 2 years earlier, Lennie had fallen off the wagon hard after witnessing the first state execution under New York's new death penalty law. Lennie and Rey had caught the perp, and had felt obligated to see the case through to it's end. It had been an awful day for them all, ending with the death in a DUI hit and run of ADA Claire Kincade as she drove Lennie home from the bar. Lennie had escaped uninjured, except for his soul. It had been a long hard climb for him to get his life back together after that day. And now this. If anything could push him back off the wagon, this was it.  
  
When Rey came back into the living room, Lennie was standing there staring at a photo of Rey's family, tears again streaming down his face. Rey handed him the glass of water and gently took the photo from his shaking hands.  
  
"Rey, I can't stay here. I know what you're trying to do, and I appreciate it, but I just can't stay here. Your family just reminds me of everything I've lost . . ."  
  
Rey put his arm around Lennie's shaking shoulders and gently guided him back to the couch. They sat together in silence until Rey realized that Lennie had given in to the emotional exhaustion and fallen asleep in his arms. He got up, careful not to wake Lennie, and gently settled his sleeping friend into a more comfortable position.  
  
Over at the DA's office, Jack McCoy and Jamie Ross were discussing a case.  
  
"OK, get Briscoe and Curtis to check that out and we'll take it to the Grand Jury." McCoy instructed his assistant. Jamie nodded and headed back to her office to call the detectives. However, Lt. Van Buren answered her call. She hurried back to Jack's office to share the horrible news.  
  
"Jack . . ." There was something in Jamie's voice that warned Jack that trouble was coming. He looked up to see the usually unflappable ADA with a tear rolling down her cheek. "Lennie's daughter, the one who testified? She was killed this morning!"  
  
"Oh no . . ."  
  
Like all of Lennie's friends, Jack's first thought was how the recovering alcoholic would make it through this sober. He thought back to that fateful night 2 years ago. His world had nearly ended when Claire died. Both he and Lennie had felt guilty of somehow having caused her death, and over the following months they had spent hours talking. The shared pain had brought them together in a way their casual working friendship could not. But underneath it all, Jack had always also felt guilty of helping Lennie take that step off the wagon that night. This time, he vowed, would be different.  
  
"Where is he?" "Anita said Rey took him back to his house." "I know Lennie. Somehow, I can't see him being comfortable around Rey's family right now."  
  
Jamie nodded. "Clear my calendar for tomorrow, will you? I have a feeling I won't be in." At Jamie's questioning look, Jack replied, "I let him down last time. Not again. Let Adam know for me, will you?" Jamie nodded and left as Jack reached for the phone to call Rey's cell number.  
  
Rey gently shook Lennie's shoulder to wake him up. "Hey, Lennie, better wake up now unless you want to be here when Debra and the girls get back." Lennie's eyes opened slowly, the lashes crusted with his tears. "Rey?" "Don't worry, Lennie, we got it covered. I'm gonna take you back to your place, and Jack McCoy will meet you there."  
  
Lennie sighed and rubbed his eyes. Somehow out of the tragedy of Claire's death, he and Jack had found a friendship neither one had expected. This was good - Jack he could talk to.  
  
~~~  
  
Rey had dropped him back at his apartment, and now Lennie stared at the telephone, terrified of the call he had to make. "Gloria? It's me, Lennie." His ex-wife's sarcastic voice came back, he didn't even hear what she was saying. "Gloria, please, not now. Sit down. I have some bad news. Cathy's dead."  
  
Oh, God, he had said it. It had to be true. He couldn't hide from it. Somehow, he managed to tell Gloria the few details he had and told her to contact Lt. Van Buren to get the rest and to claim the body. Gloria screamed at him through the telephone, "How could you let your daughter die? You're a cop, you're supposed to serve and PROTECT! Why didn't you protect HER?"  
  
//That's what I've been asking myself all day// he thought as the anger washed over him. For now he directed it at his ex. "So it's MY fault? Like everything is my fault? Damn it, Gloria, I can't deal with this right now." He slammed the phone down and stalked around the apartment looking for something to throw. His fury was interrupted by a knock at the door. He yanked the door open and screamed "WHAT?" before he remembered that Jack was coming.  
  
"Hey, Lennie, it's just me." Seeing the look of concern on his friend's face pushed Lennie back over the edge into the tears hiding behind the anger. Jack moved into the apartment, shutting and locking the door behind him before moving to Lennie's side and gently laying a hand on his arm. "I know, Lennie . . . I know."  
  
But Lennie was in no mood for comfort. He roughly shook off Jack's hand and stalked across the room. "Dammit, Jack, I'm a cop. I SHOULD have protected her, instead of encouraging her to testify against that scum. She was afraid this would happen! She knew it! And we just turned her loose out there after we blew the case, thanks for testifying, sorry we didn't put the bastard away, have a nice life!"  
  
Jack sighed and sank down onto the couch. The system really hadn't worked this time - he had no easy answers for his friend. "What can I say, Lennie? The system isn't perfect." He realized that right now Lennie needed to vent, so he sat back and let his friend rant for the better part of an hour until finally he ran out of steam and collapsed onto the couch next to Jack. "Aw, shit, Jack, we really couldn't have done anything different, could we? But there's no way in hell Gloria will ever understand that, is there? For her, this will always be just another - no, the worst of all the great Lennie Briscoe screw-ups."  
  
Jack reached out and gently placed his hand on Lennie's shoulder. "Let me guess - you had just called your ex to tell her the bad news before I got here?" Lennie nodded and leaned slightly into Jack's embrace. "God, I'm tired." "Ex-wives will do that to you." Lennie let out a sound that might just have been a laugh. //Ah hah!// thought Jack; //an opening! Time to lighten the mood. // Jack chuckled and started into a story about his ex and the insane hoops she had tired to put him through during their divorce, and for the next several hours they traded war stories from the front lines of marriage over a pizza that finally came an hour late.  
  
About midnight, Lennie closed his eyes and leaned back into the corner of the couch with a sigh. "Thanks, Jack. I think I might even be able to get some sleep tonight. You'd better head home, it's getting late."  
  
"What makes you think I'm going anywhere? Lennie, you may be feeling OK now, but at 4AM when you wake up and the realization hits you again, and I guarantee it WILL, that's the real danger zone. The night after Claire died, I really tried to bury myself in a bottle of Scotch. I don't want you to have to face that alone."  
  
Lennie thought a minute about protesting. Then he looked into Jack's eyes, and realized that his friend was right. It really would be a bad idea for him to be alone right now. It occurred to him how lucky he was that he had such good friends to lean on this time around. He managed a small smile and nodded, "OK, you win. I don't have much in the way of guest quarters . . ." "Do you know how many nights I've slept on the couch in my office? Just get me a pillow and blanket and I'll be fine out here."  
  
The next morning, Jack was regretting those words. Lennie's old sofa had definitely seen better days and was nowhere close to as comfortable as the nice leather one in Jack's office. He groaned as he tried to stretch the kinks out. He knew Lennie was going to need help to get through the rest of the week, especially the funeral, but something was going to have to give if Jack was going to survive it.  
  
He found the coffee machine and managed to get a pot going before Lennie emerged from his bedroom wearing the most god-awful plaid flannel bathrobe Jack had ever seen. Somehow, he kept from making a snarky remark and simply said "Morning Lennie. Sleep OK?"  
  
"Mostly. You were right - I did wake up around 4AM. But somehow just knowing you were out here made it OK. Knowing I wasn't alone. Thanks, Jack."  
  
"Don't mention it. But I was thinking - I actually have a real guest room - why don't you pack some things and spend the rest of the week at my place? At least until after the funeral?"  
  
Lennie was touched by Jack's offer. Truth be told, he knew it wouldn't be a good idea for him to hide out here alone. Gloria would take care of notifying the family; he could just change his machine to say to call Jack's number if anybody did try to reach him. Why the hell not? So many times he had struggled to get through tough times alone. This time he had people to lean on. Wow - when had that happened? He shook his head in wonderment.  
  
"Lennie, come on, I really think this would be for the best."  
  
Lennie looked up and realized Jack had taken his movement as a no. "Sorry, Jack, was thinking about something else. That wasn't a no. I appreciate the offer - thank you."  
  
Jack smiled with relief. "OK, then how about this - I rode the bike over last night, so I'll head home now and clean up a bit- I wasn't exactly expecting company! - and you can pack and take a cab over in a bit?" //And stash the scotch while I'm at it . .// He scrounged a pen and a scrap of paper from the kitchen table and wrote down the address.  
  
Lennie nodded. "Sounds like a plan."  
  
~~~  
  
The morning of the funeral dawned bright and cold. Lennie was NOT looking forward to this. Not only would this be the hardest thing he had ever faced, he would also have to face Gloria. And somehow he knew she would make it 10 times harder than it had to be. He glanced at his reflection in the mirror as he donned his best dark suit and sighed. //God, I feel old//, he thought. //No father should have to bury his little girl . . . // No. Not going there now. Too many people to face today; he had to keep himself together. If he fell apart now, no way could he face everybody. He took a deep breath and focused on just getting through this day.  
  
A tap on the door then Jack stuck his head in to the guest room. "Lennie, the car is here. You ready?"  
  
"How could I ever be ready for this day?" Lennie muttered as his trembling hands made a mess of tying his necktie. Jack came into the room and gently took the offending fabric, finishing the process for him, then put his hands on Lennie's shoulders and squeezed, trying to somehow give his friend the strength to continue. Lennie sighed again and nodded. "Let's go."  
  
In the living room, Anita Van Buren was waiting for them. Since Jack's only transport was the bike, she had volunteered for chauffeur duty today. She stood as she heard them coming down the hallway and reached out as if to offer her condolences. "Lennie . . ."  
  
"Please, Lieutenant, not now. If I lose it now . . ."  
  
Anita nodded, understanding. The three of them walked in silence to the elevator and down to her car in the garage below the building. It wasn't a long drive to the Funeral Home. Anita dropped them off then went to park the car for the procession to the cemetery.  
  
Lennie trembled as he walked into the room where Cathy lay. It didn't help that the moment she saw him, Gloria looked like she wanted to kill him there on the spot. Jack spotted Jamie Ross and a knot of Lennie's friends from the precinct, and moved to stand with them while Lennie took his place with the immediate family, despite Gloria's open hostility. Their younger daughter was the only one who stepped forward to give Lennie a quick hug, but then she too stood firmly on her mother's side of the camp. Standing there with his "family," Lennie had never felt so alone.  
  
Lennie didn't care much for religion of any sort, but he felt especially out of place here at a Jewish funeral. But this was his little girl, and nobody was going to keep him from saying goodbye to her. The Rabbi entered and began the ritual prayers. It was a short simple ceremony, and before he knew it, it was over. The pallbearers carried the casket holding his most precious treasure out to the hearse as Lennie's tears poured silently down. He hung back, letting the "family" lead the procession out. Anita and Jack were suddenly there beside him, gently steering him toward the car.  
  
When they arrived at the cemetery, it wasn't long before Lennie was surrounded by his friends and colleagues. The funeral seemed to consist of two separate parties; his and Gloria's. After the ceremony was over and people started to disperse, Gloria stalked over to him and began shouting. "How DARE you sully her memory by coming here! How DARE you! You all but killed her yourself!" Her shrieks and pummeling fists caught Lennie by surprise; for a moment he just stood there and took it. It was long enough for Anita to step forcefully between them.  
  
"Alright, that's ENOUGH! Mrs. Briscoe, I don't know what twisted version of reality you're living in, but Lennie is one of the finest cops and most decent men I've ever known. He's hurting enough today, he doesn't need you to make it worse. Now walk away from here before I arrest you for assault!"  
  
With Jack and Rey at his sides and Anita leading the charge, Gloria quickly backed down and stalked off to join the rest of the family. Lennie stood there looking dumbfounded at his friends' defense of him. It was then that he realized that family didn't have anything to do with blood or marriage. His family had closed ranks around him today, supporting him in silence earlier just as Anita had withheld her condolences so he could retain his composure, and now they all stood by him as the tears washed away the grief and replaced it with a warm sense of belonging. One by one, each of them came to him now and said a few words of comfort, offered a hand or a hug. Anita, Rey, Jack, Jamie, god, even Adam Schiff had shown up! And was that Mike? His old partner, Mike Logan, pushed through the crowd to take his hand then pull him into a rough embrace. His tears flowed freely now, but they were a mixture of pain and joy as he realized just how lucky he was.  
  
Eventually, the crowd thinned as people went back to work. Finally, only Jack and Anita remained. Anita now laid her hand on his arm and asked "You gonna be OK, Lennie?" He smiled at her and reached over to lay his other hand over hers. "Yeah. Thanks for standing up to Gloria for me. I don't think I could have done that today." "You're one of our own, Lennie. We take care of our own." 


	2. The Odd Couple

The Odd Couple  
  
What a week it had been. Was it really only 4 days ago that he and Rey had been assigned to investigate a shooting only to find that the victim was his daughter, Cathy? That day had been the blackest of his life - and that's saying a lot, considering. The pain was still with him - it always would be - but somehow now it was bearable. Mostly because for the first time in a long time, he didn't feel completely alone. His work had always been his life, that was one of the major reasons both of his marriages had failed. But for some reason, it had never occurred to him until Cathy's funeral that his friends and colleagues could become his family. They truly cared about him, and with their help he could get through the dark times without leaning on the crutch of a bottle.  
  
For example, Jack. For too many years, Lennie had lived alone in a tiny apartment. He often worked late just so he didn't have to go back there. But after Cathy's death, his friend Jack McCoy had invited him to stay at Jack's place until he felt able to face a night alone without reaching for that crutch. Now that the funeral was over, he found he was reluctant to move back to his hole in the wall. It had been nice having someone else around to talk to.  
  
For his part, Jack made no efforts to push Lennie out. He still felt somewhat responsible for Lennie's fall off the wagon 2 years earlier the night after they witnessed the execution of Mickey Scott. Somehow, both of them had ended up in the same bar that afternoon, trying to escape for a short while from the doubts that plagued them. Jack had gotten a big head start - he was already quite drunk by the time Lennie appeared. In a moment of drunken forgetfulness, he had told the bartender to "Give my friend a drink!" OK, so Lennie had made it his usual club soda, Jack had planted the idea. It was no real surprise that by the end of the evening, Lennie had fallen off the wagon, hard.  
  
Of course, the worst was yet to come. Jack left the bar in disgust, tired of waiting for his lady love and assistant Claire to show up. When she finally arrived, instead of Jack she found Lennie, and realizing he was drunk, she offered him a ride home. On the way, a drunk driver plowed through a red light right into the side of the car. Claire was killed instantly, while Lennie escaped unharmed - except maybe for his soul.  
  
Jack and Lennie were both consummate loners. For a while, they each fought their individual battles with the memories of that day, and they were losing. After about a month, Jack had been forced to take a new assistant and the memory of Claire was haunting him. Lennie stopped by the DA's office to drop off some evidence for a file, and seeing Jack's pain, he suggested they go grab a club soda together. Jack automatically declined; these days, he preferred to drink alone, and definitely NOT club soda. They talked about that night briefly, both expressing their guilt for what happened. As Lennie sadly walked away, something inside Jack snapped into focus. He stuck his head out the door of his office and called "Hey, Lennie. Wait up." Lennie stopped and looked back in surprise to see Jack putting on his jacket as he jogged down the hall to catch up. Over the next several months, they found in their shared pain a friendship that neither would have expected.  
  
So when Cathy was killed, Jack wanted to make sure that this time, Lennie stayed ON the wagon. He had taken the rest of that week off work to help. Once again, Lennie found solace in Jack's company; they stayed up late talking about anything and everything, so that Lennie was too tired to worry about the demons that haunt you when you're alone and awake in the wee small hours of the morning. They found they had more in common than Lennie would ever have expected. Jack may have had the polish of a law degree, but underneath he was the son of a Chicago cop.  
  
Next week they would both return to work. On Saturday, Lennie suggested that it was time for him to head back home.  
  
"Are you sure, Lennie? You don't have to if you're not ready. Sometimes normal life is harder to cope with than the immediate aftermath of a tragedy. Believe me, I know." For just a moment, the sadness of losing Claire crept back into Jack's eyes. He forced it away, and, determined to lighten the moment, added with a grin "Besides, it's not like you're cramping my style or anything!"  
  
Lennie laughed at Jack's comment, but he had seen that moment of pain. "OK, one more week."  
  
Something truly amazing happened that second week. Both of them were classic workaholics, and being out most of the previous week had left them way behind. Lennie spent most of the day Monday digging through paperwork and avoiding the stares of all the well-meaning people around the station. Around 6PM, his phone rang. "Hey, Lennie, you gonna get stuck there late tonight or coming home at a reasonable hour?"  
  
He smiled as he realized Jack was still trying to take care of him. "Well, I figured YOU would be the one trapped under a mountain of paperwork after being out a week! I hadn't really thought about it."  
  
"Well, thanks to Jamie, the mountain isn't TOO high, and I've had about as much paperwork as I can stand today. Dinner?"  
  
They met at a pub not far from the apartment, then headed back for a quiet evening at home. Over the course of the week, the two workaholics actually left work at a reasonable hour most of the time. Wednesday evening, Jack had to work late to get ready for a court appearance Thursday, but even then Lennie didn't stay too late. Even alone, coming home to Jack's apartment was a lot better than going back to his hole-in-the-wall.  
  
//You know, I could get used to this.// he thought. //Hell of a nice place, good company most of the time, but nobody screaming that I HAVE to be home by 7:00 every night. God, Gloria always WAS good at screaming. Can't believe she pulled that stunt at the funeral. But it was worth it to see Van Buren put her in her place!//  
  
He chuckled at the memory, then decided that it was about time he did something to earn his keep around here and actually started doing some housework. By the time Jack turned up at 10PM, he had cleaned up the kitchen, picked up around the living room, and vacuumed the place. They chatted briefly, Jack clearly surprised by Lennie's sudden domestic turn, then called it a night.  
  
//Yup, I could DEFINITELY get used to this. // Lennie thought as he crawled into the bed in Jack's guest room. //Wonder if he'd let me stay? A modern day "Odd Couple," his Felix to my Oscar. Sharing an apartment with my best friend. Hey, when did Jack become my best friend? For that matter, when was the last time I HAD a best friend?// Lennie's thoughts rambled as he faded into sleep.  
  
Jack shook his head as he tossed his jeans in the general direction of the laundry hamper. He was touched by Lennie's outbreak of domesticity. //I could get used to this. It's been really nice to have somebody to come home to. Even after a long night like this, to have someone greet you with a smile instead of anger for another long night. Lennie understands, his job has the same problem. You never know when you're going to have to work late. Or how long. Sometimes it just has to be done. He even cleaned up the kitchen? I HATE cleaning the kitchen. I wonder if he'd consider staying . . .?//  
  
Friday turned into a late night for Lennie as he and his partner Rey tracked down someone too nasty to leave out on the streets over the weekend. He was amazed that it actually occurred to him to leave a message on Jack's machine that he would be late, don't wait up. By the time they got the perp booked, it was well after midnight. The apartment was dark when he got home; Jack had already gone to bed. Lennie was careful to be quiet as he made his way back to his room. Too bad after tonight it wouldn't be his anymore.  
  
The next morning he woke late, around 9AM. He threw on his bathrobe - the plaid flannel that he knew just drove Jack crazy it was so ugly - and followed his nose to the pot of coffee already made. There was a post-it note attached to the coffee pot. //Jack's scrawl is almost bad enough to be a doctor's, // he chuckled to himself.  
  
"Hope things didn't get too ugly out there last night. I've got some  
errands early today, will probably be back before you even get up. If  
you are up, stick around if you can - I need to talk to you."  
  
Oh. This was it, then. Maybe he WAS cramping Jack's style after all. He sighed heavily. //Ah, well, it was nice while it lasted. Guess I'd better go pack.//  
  
He sat down at the kitchen table, insisting on at least one cup of coffee before said packing. A few minutes later, he heard the key in the door and Jack burst in buried under a mountain of grocery bags. "Hey, sleepyhead, you're finally up! What time did you get in last night?"  
  
The mountain deposited itself onto the kitchen table in front of Lennie and he automatically began helping Jack put the stuff away. "Around one AM, I think. Was pretty beat, but that bastard rapist we've been looking for is behind bars and won't be hurting anybody over the weekend, so it was worth it."  
  
As they finished putting the groceries away, Lennie decided it was time to get the painful question out of the way. "So what did you want to talk about?" Jack turned and looked at his friend. "Lennie, I know you planned to head back to your place today. But I've been thinking. It's been really nice having you around here. I guess I've lived alone for so long I forgot what it was like to have somebody to share my life with. But having you here, especially this week as life got back to normal, I realized how much I missed it. Especially since you keep the same weird hours I do, and you don't think that I OUGHT to be home by 7 every night."  
  
Lennie stared at Jack for a moment to convince himself that he was hearing correctly, then broke into a huge grin. "I know what you mean. Been thinking the same thing myself. Actually, I've been dreading heading back to that mouse hole I call an apartment. Didn't dare hope you'd invite me to stay . . .?"  
  
"Consider yourself invited, my friend. But there IS one thing." Jack was staring at Lennie, trying for his best stern prosecutor glare but the grin edging in just ruined the effect. "You've GOT to get a new bathrobe!" 


End file.
